Following the Tesla Model 3 unveiling on March 31, Kyle Field and I spent approximately 20 minutes interviewing Roger and Matt Pressman, founders of EVANNEX, about their test ride in the Model 3. Being Tesla aftermarket specialists, and Roger being an engineer who worked on displays for fighter pilot cockpits in a former professional life, these guys were ideal interviewees for this historic experience. It also helped that the person giving them the ride was a Tesla engineer who worked on the Model 3.

You can launch straight into the interview in the video below, or read our summary following that.

Like I said too many times to count in the past few days, Roger brought up the concerns that must be flowing in the board rooms of GM, Audi, BMW, etc… How much is this car going to eat into the market share of Audi, BMW, Mercedes?… How much will it steal sales away from the Chevy Bolt?…

These EVANNEX boys also clearly loved the landscape display on this prototype Model 3… Roger called it “revolutionary,” noting that it replaces the dash display completely. Additionally, it “floats,” which allows you to lower the dash if you want, creating extra space and a feeling of roominess you can’t get in a normal car. The display doesn’t tilt toward the driver like in a Model X or Model S either — it spreads across with the driver and front passenger each having a good angle.

Kyle and Roger both quickly came to the conclusion this is a strong lean-in to fully autonomous driving.

Matt pressed the engineer driving the Model 3 to ask if this display would really make it into the production version, and he said that it would and Elon really wanted it. To follow up on that, Roger added that they also talked to the interior designer of the car a bit earlier in the evening, and he had said that they originally had the landscape display layout, but then decided that they couldn’t do it as desired and took it out, but then found a way to get it back into the car.

Even having a Model S, Roger noted that the Model 3 was really fast. To be expected, but still great to hear.

As you could see if you watched our exclusive 20-minute video of the Tesla Model 3 on the test track, they were also showing off the handling on the ride back to the event with all of the riders. Roll stability was excellent, Roger noted.

Overall, he noted that he thinks it will really embarrass the BMW 3 Series and Audi A4 in terms of performance. He also thinks the Model 3 “buries” both of those conventional options stylistically. I agree!

Roger and Matt are, additionally, quite tall (6’2” and 6’1”), and noted that the Model 3 is surprisingly spacious in the front and back seats, much more so than in a normal sedan of that size. A big part of that was because of the roof being all glass.

The steering wheel, also, is different from the norm, in more of a “kidney bean shape.”

The seats were heavily bolstered, sporty, high-end seats that you wouldn’t expect on a car of that price, according to Roger and Matt.

After running down everything in a quick summary, reflecting on the broad story, and dropping notes on a few more details, Kyle and Matt Coke back to the beginning — the fact that Elon Musk and Tesla got over 100,000 people to put down $1,000 each knowing almost nothing about this car. In the end, the story is: Elon Musk is gangsta… and I’m not talking about a Brazilian police mob boss. That’s actually a scientific observation from Matt Pressman of EVANNEX right after his ride in a Tesla Model 3 (when “scientific observations” = “brilliant joke”).

About the Author

Zachary Shahan Zach is tryin' to help society help itself (and other species). He spends most of his time here on CleanTechnica as its director and chief editor. He's also the president of Important Media and the director/founder of EV Obsession and Solar Love. Zach is recognized globally as an electric vehicle, solar energy, and energy storage expert. He has presented about cleantech at conferences in India, the UAE, Ukraine, Poland, Germany, the Netherlands, the USA, and Canada.
Zach has long-term investments in TSLA, FSLR, SPWR, SEDG, & ABB — after years of covering solar and EVs, he simply has a lot of faith in these particular companies and feels like they are good cleantech companies to invest in. But he offers no professional investment advice and would rather not be responsible for you losing money, so don't jump to conclusions.

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